sgvcruiser

Just want to update. I DMed Princess through their Instagram page (not my preferred method of communication, but I'm desperate), included my Captain Circle number and mentioned I wanted Route Sector Change. A customer service rep called me in less than one hour! My request is submitted and he mentioned that it would take about 2-3 weeks to be approved.

Thank you @Cruise Raider & @david63 The lingo is what we are looking for. @karatemom2 This is the exact same route we are planning to do. Good to know that it has been done before.

I need to ask permission to disembark early on my European cruise next year, but I couldn't find information on who to contact at Princess for this. Someone mentioned customer service, yet I can't find the customer service email anywhere in their website. I called customer service and the email(s) they gave me were all wrong. 🙄. Can't believe how complicated this turned out to be. Anyone who has done this, can you please share who I need to contact? Thank you!

Possibly too small for 20+ days..Typically 5k for 7 days cruise. Having said that, you might want to check in your Princess account.

It's not about how much money you put in. It's about how much point in comparison to the length of the sailing. My first sail with HAL, I walked away with winning, only put $300 to start. My CBS offer was ocean view + $500 which I used for 14 days Norway cruise this summer. I get about 4500 points ($600 lost) and received $700 free play CBS, no free room - which I expected since it was a 14-days sailing. From what I see, the baseline is about 5,000 points per 7-days sailing to receive a CBS offer with a free room. You will see email offer starts showing up later assuming you set your preference for email contact. Try logging in to your account every few days and do a mock search. Simply click "Plan A cruise", then "Find A cruise". Don't put any filters, instead simply sort based on Price. Click through a few pages, any cruise that came up as $100 is a casino-comp cruise.

Wow! Definitely learned a lot before the sailing even start.

Just saw that HAL is cancelling Rotterdam Panama Canal cruise too. We are scheduled for Volendam this xmas, hopefully no cancellation. Is there anyway to find out if the ship is scheduled or just wait for the email?

Thank you for all the answers. Just want to figure out how late I can arrive. 😅

It's on Majestic. So embarkation is set at regular 5 - 6 pm limit?

I'm looking into this short trip for May 9 next year. My question is since the ship does not actually leave until 2 am next day, do they allow "late" embarkation until 7 or 8 pm? Thanks!

Agree with Muggo11. In general, the slot are tighter. Sometimes you might get lucky, but most often not. I play to get the most points so I bet smallish ($1 - $2) and I make sure to round up my points before moving to next machine. My aim is to turnover my money at least 10x, if not winning. Majority of times, it's only 4 to 6 times.

You go to cashier, ask to buy some chips, "beep" your medalion - etc. The biggest problem I find on table playing is the way they keep track of your points. Of course you also have better odd of winning something vs slot. RoxieVegas is correct too. I think cruising is the only place where you can gamble using your credit card line since everything is charged to your room. You have to be careful with your budget if you don't want to end up with a shock at the end of the cruise.

Core offer is not connected to any particular sailing or special event thus have more flexibility to use. It's based on your overall play vs one particular sailing (CBS). You can use the free/discounted room up to 3x per offer but the free-play (if any) will only apply to the first one. If by any chance, you have to cancel the first cruise you will loose the free-play. It seemed to me that it is issued after the previous one expired or after you use it all. I like the core-offer because it allows me to book far ahead and/or high-demand ittn (like the launching of the Sun Princess) even though mine is only free-inside plus $100 free-play. The sucky part, unlike CBS, it takes longer time to get better offer.

The basic: 1. Beep the medalian to the machine reader 2. Put in your pin (mmyy of your birthday - you can change it later) 3. First time - charge the amount you want to play into your room, or insert cash 4. If you charge your room, it might ask for your pin again 5. Press cash out when you are done playing this machine, the money will go into your casino account. When you go to another machine, follow step 1 and 2, then you have the choice to pull money from your casino account or charge it to the room. IMPORTANT: On last night of sailing or when you have enough of getting fleeced 😅, go to the cashier and tell them you want to cash out. They will give you whatever money you have left in your casino account. Last: Princess does not charge fee for charging your gambling money to your room account.

It more depends on which line/ship style you prefer. Celebrity, Holland and Princess are considered luxury lines, more or less direct competitor. RCL and Celebrity are famous for giant big ships and transparent casino point system. NCL, RCL and Carnival are more family oriented with amusement park practically built into their ships. Holland tends to have smaller ships and older median age. Their European routes casinos tend to be empty. Literally. EMPTY. I have not done RCL/Celebrity since I don't like their point system that expired annually - but I stand corrected on that. As for Holland/Princess/Carnival, my target has always been 6000 points minimum for 3-4 sea days (smaller budget than yours). I always receive CBS offer for free inside stateroom. I also like Princess core offer that allows me to book years in advance for practically any available sailing less than 15 days.

I assumed when you mean Program, you mean cruise line?

Yes, they do have CBS but I forgot my point so my offer would not be useful as comparison. The main different with Princess is you have one year vs 6 months to use your CBS. That's a plus for me. Holland America also has their own casino VIP/ultra VIP cruises. It does seem they are a bit late to the party so to speak so they are still developing this one. I am goingn to one for December 2023 Panama Xmas sailing and it includes free excursion etc. I tried to find more info as of what excursion or which one, but so far noone knows since this is the first time they are doing it. Other things to consider about Holland's Casino: 1. Once you get 1500 points, you can ask for free drinks in Casino. 2. 5000 points, ask for free specialty restaurant meals 3. They don't really have "core offer", instead you will receive offers through email for specific cruises. I find this one a mix baggage. They could be really generous, especially for "last minute" sailing - free verandah (balcony), free drinks, free play - and even for long sailings! Princess core offers typically valid for two years or more but limited to 14 days sailing. Holland offer could include 20+ days sailing - even transpacific! - but you need to be ready to travel in 6 months to 1 year. 4. You have to pay full when you book and you will forfeit the WHOLE amount if you cancel. So make sure you have travel insurance to cover. 5. Supposedly once you are part of their casino list, the discount would automatically shown when you try to book onlline. That's their "core offer". It's been a mix result when I try. Other than that, there is no way (yet) to see what offer you have. 6. Even for casino booking, you can still get offer for last minute upgrade. They don't outsource this into bidding like Princess - instead you will receive an email with the offer detail. Simpy call them, ask what available room and pay if you accept it. Last, as far as problem with reservation and mistakes - that's pretty much the same accross the Ocean Players Club 😐. So I always print out the email offers and confirmation. Hope that helps.

Thank you!! The exact information I am looking for.

Just want to verify this before ordering the premium wifi on Rotterdam. I did this with Princess but never with Holland so just want to make sure. Can you switch account or gadget to access the internet? (i.e. Don't want to buy one for my phone and one for my laptop) Thanks!

Anyone in Rotterdam recently and can verify that they finally upgrade their internet to Starlink?

It's not simply the amount you need to gamble, it's also time. Unless you enjoy gambling, I would not recommend doing this to get free room.

Correct me if I am wrong. It looks like other lines have been doing something similar to this, but this is HAL's first time?

Received an offer from Holland for "Prestige Red Carpet Experience". It said that it includes complimentary select excursions, a specialty culinary experience, and a commemorative gift. Does anybody know if we get to choose which excursion to go? I made the reservation with PCP, but there is nothing about any of those special offer mentioned on the confirmation. When would I know which excursion and/or "culinary experience" I would get? p.s. What is "culinary experience" exactly?

Wow, I didn't know you can change your booking offer. I assumed that's from regular booking to casino?

So it looks like Princess IT and the Medalion upgrade has finally start to show its' results. My last 7 casino bookings are done directly through their website, surprisingly even including Come Back and Sail offer (2 business days after). By my count, I should have no more casino offer available - but it does look like I can still book for free cruises though the availability is not across the board. For example, 7 days European sailing (Sun Princess) for summer 2024 is full price, while 15 days Japan sailing is still free for me. I wonder if Princess Casino offer finally available online just like Holland... that would be nice. 🤞that this is not just pure luck tonight 😅